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Bears, Pats Scrap During Joint Practice; Gronk Leaves Early

It's probably a good thing the Patriots and the Bears only play each other once every four years because they don't seem to like each other very much.

 

The two teams almost got into an all-out brawl on Monday during the first day of their joint practices. According to NESN.com, the brawl started when Bears wide receiver Alshon Jeffery and Patriots defensive back Malcolm Butler started going at it during an 11-on-11 drill.

The two went from grabbing each other's facemasks to an all-out shoving match. A few teammates then noticed the pushing and shoving, and at that point, almost everyone on both teams decided to join the melee.

 

Butler got kicked out of practice.

 

There was also a small skirmish between Martellus Bennett and a few Bears players. However, that one didn't turn into a brawl.

 

It's not a complete surprise that Bennett was picking a fight with the Bears. For one, he spent the past three seasons playing for Chicago, and two, he doesn't seem to care for Jay Cutler very much.

 

Kyle Long and Chris Long got into each other's faces after practice, but that's normal, they're brothers.

 

>>Pats' TE Gronkowski Leaves Practice With Injury

 

Tight end Rob Gronkowski left the first day of joint practices between the Patriots and Bears on Monday with an apparent lower-body issue.

 

Gronkowski made awkward cut while running a route during 7-on-7 drills. He grimaced after the play and paused briefly before jogging back gingerly to rejoin his teammates.

 

Gronkowski was led back to the locker room by a trainer and did not return.

 

Later, tempers flared between Patriots cornerback Malcolm Butler and Bears receiver Alshon Jeffery, leading to an extended shoving match. It intensified into about a 30-second scrum after teammates intervened. Both players were ejected from practice.

 

A shorter incident occurred toward the end of the workout between Patriots lineman Nate Solder and Chicago linebacker Lamarr Houston.

 

>>Broncos Lose Starting DE

 

It's a good thing the NFL regular season doesn't kick off for another three weeks because the Broncos are going to need that time to figure out who's going to replace Vance Walker.

The team announced that Walker will miss the entire 2016 season after suffering a torn ACL during practice on Monday. The injury means that the Broncos will now be going with Plan C at defensive end.

 

Plan A was Malik Jackson, but that plan fell through in March when Jackson decided to sign with the Jaguars. After Jackson's departure, the Broncos turned to Walker, who was expected to be a full-time starter this season after starting four games in 2015.

 

With Walker out, the Broncos will now likely turn to one of three guys to replace him: Jared Crick, Adam Gotsis or Billy Winn.

 

Last season marked Walker's first year in Denver. Before that, the veteran defensive lineman had stops in Atlanta (2009-12), Oakland (2013) and Kansas City (2014).

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